Water pump adaptors are used to connect a water pump to an engine block, the water pump allowing for coolant to be pumped through and to circulate through an engine block, thus cooling the engine block. The coolant acts as a heat sink, as the excess heat from the engine is transferred to the coolant upon circulation through the engine. The coolant prevents the engine from overheating, which is advantageous, as the excess heat from the engine is drawn away from the engine via the coolant.
Prior art designs, such as conventional Chevrolet® engine blocks, involve coolant entering the engine block through two round holes in the front of the block. From there, the coolant is circulated around the cylinder bores, up through the head gaskets into the cylinder heads and, out through the intake manifold. The coolant passes through a thermostat housing and is returned to the radiator in the vehicle.
Chevrolet® has recently introduced its LS engine, the LS engine block having one or more rectangular coolant entry ports and one or more circular coolant exit ports. Typically, the LS engine has two rectangular coolant entry ports and two circular coolant exit ports.
For the LS engine, coolant enters the engine from the pressure side of the water pump through the lower, rectangular shaped openings in the front of the block. Once pumped in, the coolant circulates around the cylinder bores, up through the head gaskets and into the cylinder heads. From the cylinder heads, the coolant than moves forward and down into the block once again and out through the round ports located above the rectangular ports. Then the coolant is returned to the vehicle's radiator.
Chevrolet® currently markets a LS engine specific water pump. This Chevrolet® water pump is expensive and bulky, and is designed to be specific to the LS engine block. The water pump supplied by Chevrolet is a large casting that incorporates the thermostat and housing on the inlet side of the pump. To date, aftermarket offerings have mimicked this design.
However, since the LS engine specific engine water pump is bulky and expensive, there is a need in the industry to adapt conventional electric and mechanical water pumps to the GM LS engine.
What is desired, therefore, is to provide a water pump adaptor that allows a standard conventional water pump to be adapted to an engine having at least one rectangular coolant entry port and at least one circular coolant exit port, such as the GM LS engine. Furthermore, it is desired for the water pump adaptor to be provided as part of a kit such that the kit can be provided, and sold, such that the kit can adapt a standard conventional water pump to an engine having at least one rectangular coolant entry port and at least one circular coolant exit port.
It is also desired to provide a method of installing the water pump adaptor kit to adapt a water pump to an engine having at least one rectangular coolant entry port and at least one circular coolant exit port.